Take-back collected thousands of pounds of drugs in county

The results are in from a recent drug take-back event.
On Sept. 25 Placer County hosted the event in 12 locations, including the Auburn City Hall parking lot. The take-back day was hosted by the national Drug Enforcement Agency and called for residents to turn in unused prescriptions and over-the-counter medications.
The goals of the event were to keep drugs out of the hands of youth and out of local waterways.
More than 3,300 pounds of drugs were collected in Placer County. That was more than 14.1 percent of the 24,725 pounds collected statewide. A total of 242,000 pounds were collected across the United States, and all medications were incinerated, according to Anne Staines, awareness and media co-chairwoman for the Coalition for Placer County Youth.
The county took an anonymous survey during the event and found that 30 percent of people who participated were from the Auburn area, Staines said.
On the take-back day, the city of Auburn collected 655 pounds of medications, according to Megan Siren, administrative analyst for the city.
Siren said Wednesday the event was more successful than the one held in 2009.
“We had almost three times the amount of people,” Siren said. “We had almost 300 people we have surveys from. We had a very successful day. I’m glad we were able to assist people in getting rid of their pharmaceuticals.”
~Bridget Jones